Duo sentenced over training mortar found in a backpack
A Sligo man who helped the IRA by transporting an inert training mortar has avoided a jail sentence after he undertook to “stay away” from people who support and are involved in “violent republicanism”.
Presiding judge Tony Hunt said the father-oftwo became involved in such unlawful activity by a “misguided and romanticised notion of republican ideals”.
Damhan McFadden (29), of Kilmacowen, Ballysadare in Sligo, pleaded guilty at the Special Criminal Court on November 28 to knowingly rendering assistance to an unlawful organisation, styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann otherwise the IRA by transporting a training mortar in furtherance of an unlawful object within the State on August 14, 2016.
McFadden had originally pleaded not guilty to membership of an unlawful organisation on the same date and his trial had been underway since the middle of November. However, McFadden pleaded guilty to the new count on November 28 and a “nolle prosequi” was entered on the membership charge which the defendant had originally been charged with.
This meant the State will not proceed with the prosecution in relation to that count.
His former co-accused, Julian Flohr (37), with an address at Rusheen Ard, Caltragh in Sligo, was found guilty in January of membership of an unlawful organisation, styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the IRA, on August 14, 2016. Flohr was jailed for two years and 10 months.
Evidence was given at trial that McFadden and Flohr were travelling in a car from which gardai recovered an “inert” training mortar inside a “Spiderman” themed backpack.
Mark Mulholland QC, defending McFadden, previously asked the court to take into account that his client had no links with dissident republicans since August 2016, he was in full-time employment and had two young children.
Mr Mulholland said McFadden’s role was limited to transportation and it would appear to have been for no more than a short period of time. “It was an inert device so whatever the purpose may have been in the future was beyond any role to be performed by McFadden,” said the lawyer.
Counsel said McFadden was young, had huge potential and realised the error of his ways. The barrister asked the court to give his client an opportunity by way of a “long period of a suspended sentence”.
McFadden took the stand at Monday’s sentence hearing, where he undertook to the court to “stay away” from people who support and are involved in “violent republicanism.”
Passing sentence, Judge Hunt said McFadden had engaged in “intentional conduct” by using his car and his child’s backpack to move a mortar.
The gravity of his conduct was not reduced by the fact that the training mortar was “inert”, he said, adding that this device was an exact replica of a real mortar, displayed particular markings and it appeared to be a “genuine explosive device”.
“A training mortar is an object with a sinister purpose when placed in the hands of a person of an unlawful organisation,” he commented. This amounted in the court’s view to providing practical assistance to the aims and objectives of the IRA, he said.
Referring to McFadden, the judge said he became involved in the unlawful activity by a “misguided and romanticised notion of republican ideals” and the organisation had put trust in the defendant.
Having regard to the gravity of the offence, the judge said the maximum sentence was eight years in prison but the headline sentence in this case was three years and four months.
In mitigation, he noted that Mr Mulholland had put forward a carefully and considered plea on behalf of his client.
The court said McFadden was entitled to a discount of 20 per cent as he had offered a plea to assisting an unlawful organisation at the outset of the trial which had been initially refused.
A sentence of two years and eight months was the appropriate sentence to be served, explained the judge.
Other mitigating factors in sentencing, Mr Judge Hunt said, was his absence of previous convictions as well as a letter provided to the court by the defendant, which said he would disassociate from unlawful organisations.
Judge Hunt imposed a fully suspended sentence of two years and eight months. McFadden entered a bond of €100 to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for this period of time.
Addressing McFadden, the judge said: “We don’t want to see you back here again”.
Delivering judgment in Julian Flohr’s case last month, Judge Hunt said the court had attached significant weight to Detective Superintendent Tom Maguire’s evidence that Flohr was a member of an unlawful organisation and it was supported by independent evidence including the time of night, the remote location, the direction the car was travelling in and the purpose of moving an “inert” training mortar from one place to another.
He said the court was satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that the combined weight of the two strands of evidence was sufficient to establish Flohr’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Furthermore, the court had excluded interviews with Flohr where the gardai sought to utilise adverse inferences under the provisions of Section 2 of the Offences Against the State Act. The section allows a court to draw inferences from a suspected person’s failure or refusal to answer questions regarding alleged IRA membership. The court’s reasoning was that insufficient detail had been provided to Flohr’s lawyers in advance of the provisions being invoked, therefore the lawyers were not in a position to properly advise Flohr in relation to the questions posed.
The court “must be astute to ensure that there was proper and meaningful access to legal advice, particularly in a situation where both An Garda Siochana and the solicitor’s professional body have usefully explained and set out the manner in which they intended that the section in question should be operated,” said Judge Hunt.
Due to what the court described as “obvious shortcomings in the pre-interview briefing in this case” the court ruled the interviews inadmissible.
Sentencing Flohr on Monday, Judge Hunt, sitting with Judge Sinéad Ní Chúlacháin and Judge Cormac Dunne, sentenced him to two years and 10 months imprisonment, backdated to May last year when he went into custody.